The New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets have just an 18 percent chance of making the playoffs, according to the Elias Sports Bureau – a number that just a month ago would have seemed 82 percent short.

Prior to the start of the regular season, both the Knicks and the Nets had championship aspirations and were involved in the conversation as potential teams that could end the Miami Heat’s opportunity for a third-straight NBA title. Those aspirations have since vanished.

As far as the Knicks are concerned, the offseason gave the team the opportunity to re-sign reigning Sixth Man of the Year Award winner J.R. Smith in addition to getting superstar Amar’e Stoudemire and swingman Iman Shumpert back from injuries.

For the Nets, General Manager Billy King made one of the biggest trades in recent memory by acquiring both Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett from the Boston Celtics to play alongside Brook Lopez, Joe Johnson and Deron Williams.

So where did it all go wrong?

The Knicks rank 24th in total team offense, which was a strength for the team just a season ago, according to Bleacherreport.com.

Trigger-happy shooters Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith are off to abysmal starts, leaving the team searching for an additional scoring threat. With starting point guard Raymond Felton out with an injury, help may not be on the way for quite some time.

To make matters worse, a team that already plays pitiful defense lost its premier rim-protector, Tyson Chandler, earlier in the year. Chandler, who is suffering from a fracture in his right leg, has been out since the first week of November.

“We are in a dark place,” said Anthony in an interview with Bleacherreport.com. “Right now the game is not fun for nobody.”

With the inability to get its premier scorers going, injuries to key role players and a lack of defensive identity, the Knicks’ woes will continue to mount as the season progresses.

Aside from the Knicks, across the Brooklyn Bridge lies a franchise in the Nets with even bigger hills to climb.

King built the Nets with the intent to make the team an instant winner and build off its success from last year. With Pierce and Garnett joining the mix, King envisioned a starting five for the ages.

However, Brooklyn was without a coach.

Instead of hiring a veteran coach such as Lionel Hollins or George Karl to put each piece of the puzzle in the right spot, King hired Nets legend Jason Kidd to be the head coach – a move King wishes he could take back.

Although Kidd was a great player, he came to Brooklyn with no coaching experience at any level. After retiring from the game during the same offseason, Kidd was thrown into the fire to coach a team that was built for immediate success.

The rest is history.

Brooklyn has struggled to find good chemistry among its starters, while the trade for Pierce and Garnett left the team with a depleted bench and no one to come in and hold the lead when its superstars need a breather.

As for Kidd, he can be seen walking with a clueless look on his face up and down the court while spilling his cup of soda all over himself.

If things do not shape up quickly for the Knicks and Nets, the Big Apple could be without any playoff teams for the first time since the 2009-10 season.

If the starts by both teams are any indicator of things to come, that 18 percent chance might get even smaller as the season progresses.